Shift in paradigm: Organizational values and performance

Quantum theories have become widely accepted in the fields of management and social sciences, because these theories enhance organizational sustainability. The principles of the quantum approach are humanizing in nature being a panacea in organizational life. In those organizations that adopt this mindset, employees tend to accept common goals and objectives. The aim of this chapter is to ascertain whether management of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), specifically Universities, adhere to the quantum principles already evident in other sectors. Universities are, par excellence, the source for creation and sharing of knowledge, hence this chapter reflects on whether sustainability is achievable and also if major organizational challenges are surpassed in knowledge creation and sharing despite the absence of spiritual capital. Spiritual capital is a vital component in the new age organizational paradigm. The main objective of this chapter, therefore, is the identification of spiritual capital characteristics in profit-oriented organizations, including Universities

Capturing Definitions for a Sustainable Distance Education Ecosystem through an Online Delphi Study

In broadest terms, ecology is the scientific study of interactions among organisms and their environment, and ecosystem defines a community of living organisms in conjunction with the nonliving components of their environment interacting as a system. At present, both terms are references of many studies including education; various authors and studies investigating distance education with an ecological perspective refer to the ecosystem concept as frameworks for defining the operational components and processes. Among all these contributions, the concept of “waste,” one of the key concerns of sustainability, seems to be vaguely discussed. Having this as a standpoint, an online Delphi study was carried out in a research project at Anadolu University, Turkey, aiming to define a sustainable distance education ecosystem including the explanation of “waste” with reference to ecosystem definitions. The study was processed online and is explained by both presenting the results and discussing the benefits and also difficulties encountered